A comparative review of the top secondary marketplaces for Solana NFTs
Solana NFTs are steadily taking over the space, even if they have not yet reached the magnitude of collections on the Ethereum blockchain. Considering this rising popularity, we decided to take a look at the pros and cons of the two most popular Solana NFTs marketplaces – Magic Eden and OpenSea.
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Summary:
- Solana NFTs are all the rage lately with projects like OkayBears stealing the spotlight
- Magic Eden vs. OpenSea – listing, fees, ease of use, and everything you need to know about both platforms
Solana NFTs take center stage
While the NFT space thrives on Ethereum, other blockchains are picking up the pace to offer a competitive trading environment and much lower gas fees. Solana shines bright in this race as NFT enthusiasts rush to new projects on the chain.
One of the most impressive recent successes for Solana NFTs was the OkayBears collection. It took the NFT space by storm, outperforming big names across all chains like Bored Ape Yacht Club, Axie Infinity, and CryptoPunks.
You can read our detailed OkayBears report here.
Considering the stellar rise to fame for such projects, Solana NFTs are gaining traction. More users are turning to the high throughput and low gas fees blockchain to find their next favorite collectible. This only bears the question, which are the top marketplaces for Solana NFTs? And the answer is simple – Magic Eden and OpenSea.
Magic Eden vs. OpenSea
Getting started
Getting started with Magic Eden and OpenSea is pretty straightforward. You need to connect your wallet for the platforms to be able to view your current NFT portfolio. If you want to buy new NFTs, they will go to that wallet, and if you want to sell some of your current holdings, they must be stored in the connected wallet.
Magic Eden supports thirteen wallet providers, including Phantom, Solflare, Solet, and Exodus. On the other hand, OpenSea sticks to the more traditional choices Metamask, Wallet Connect, Phantom, and Glow.
Both platforms have a straightforward user interface, allowing you to link your portfolio in a matter of seconds and with just a couple of clicks. However, if you’re looking for the ultimate Solana wallet variety, Magic Eden outperforms OpenSea in terms of the available choices.
Buying Solana NFTs
Once you have your wallet connected to a secondary marketplace, you generally have two paths – buying Solana NFTs or listing and selling them. Let’s start with purchasing.
Magic Eden has a very easy purchasing structure. However, users need to have enough funds in their wallets. While OpenSea supports card payments through Moonpay, Magic Eden is completely web3, only allowing customers to pay with crypto already in their wallets.
Notably, the transaction fee on Magic Eden is 2%, while the same fee on OpenSea is set at 2.5%. As both marketplaces facilitate transactions on the Solana blockchain, the gas fee associated with a purchase is relatively low at around 0.00001 SOL, or less than $0.01.
Listing and selling Solana NFTs
Listing and selling your Solana NFTs on Magic Eden and OpenSea is not too much hassle. Once you have your wallet connected to the platform of choice, you can decide which collectibles you want to list for sale.
Magic Eden does not charge any additional fees for listing or delisting your NFTs from the market. Of course, the transaction fee of 2% when the item is sold remains, and it is virtually the only thing you owe Magic Eden when listing and selling NFTs through the platform. Importantly, creator fees, or royalty fees, will also be deducted from the sale price of your NFTs every time they switch owners.
OpenSea functions in much the same way. While Ethereum NFT sales on OpenSea require validations and higher gas fees, its Solana beta version reduces these costs to a minimum. The platform transaction fee of 2.5% remains for every sale you make. Additionally, creator royalty fees are also deducted from the final sale price.
Both platforms allow artists and creators to set their own royalty fee percentage.
Auctions
This is a separate selling mechanic offered by both Magic Eden and OpenSea. The auction function allows sellers not to put a fixed price on their NFT but rather invite bidders to say what they are willing to pay for the piece.
Both marketplaces have auction structures in place, allowing sellers to create live bidding competitions for their NFTs. Importantly, if you are bidding in an auction, you need to have the amount of SOL tokens you’re prepared to pay in your wallet, as they are set aside in an escrow wallet until the auction is complete. If you were outbid, your SOL is returned to your wallet.
Performance
Magic Eden and OpenSea are the leading secondary marketplaces for Solana NFTs, according to DappRadar data. Magic Eden ranks first with nearly 300,000 unique active wallets registered in the past thirty days.
OpenSea is following closely in the second position, with over 80,000 unique active wallets registered in the past month. However, it is essential to note that OpenSea’s Solana integration is still in beta.
Magic Eden vs. OpenSea in a nutshell
| Magic Eden | OpenSea | |
| Wallet Support | – 13 Solana wallets – Phantom – Solflare – Solet – Exodus | – 2 Solana wallets – Phantom – Glow |
| Transaction Fees | – 2% fee on all transactions | – 2.5% fee on all transactions |
| Auction Support | – Yes | – Yes |
| Monthly Solana Users | ~ 300,000 UAW monthly | ~ 80,000 UAW monthly |
Magic Eden and OpenSea are dominating the Solana NFT space, consistently ranking at the top of DappRadar Solana Marketplaces charts. If you want to keep a closer eye on these top performers, check out their official dapp pages: Magic Eden and OpenSea. Additionally, you can follow DappRadar on Twitter to get the latest comparison reviews and NFT updates.
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